


Alice's adventures in Hachetfield

by CheckerboardChair



Category: The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals - Team StarKid
Genre: Alice in Wonderland References, Blood and Injury, Cults, Gore, Hatchetfield Universe, High School, Multi, Murder Mystery, Nightmare Time Spoilers, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Starkid - Freeform, Vampires, kind of, mention of Wiggly and the others, nightmare time
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 07:07:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27199598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CheckerboardChair/pseuds/CheckerboardChair
Summary: Alice was having a shitty, shitty night.It really had been a shitty week, maybe even a shitty few years if she was being pessimistic. On Monday, her mother, out of the blue, announced she was going on a long business trip to New York for the summer. Alice was elated. New York? Imagine all the plays she could see, the cafes she could write at, the days of wondering through the park. Her enjoyment was cut short at one thought: Deb. The entire summer? No Deb? Alice was already feeling like there was a rift forming between them, the couple of miles of water and land separating Clivesdale and Hatchetfield already straining their relationship.Turns out, Alice had nothing to worry about. Her mother informed her in her next sentence that Alice would be staying with her father, Bill, for the rest of the summer. Great.Featuring: new friendships, heartbreak, murderous cheerleaders- actually, a possible cult of murderous cheerleaders, pink hair, and the just general weirdness of Hatchetfield. Alice's summer is only just beginning.
Relationships: Alice/Deb (The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals), Becky Barnes/Tom Houston, Lex Foster/Ethan Green, Paul Matthews/Emma Perkins
Comments: 11
Kudos: 16





	1. Chapter One

Alice was having a shitty, shitty night.

It really had been a shitty week. Maybe even a shitty few years, if she was being pessimistic. On Monday her mother, out of the blue, announced she was going on a long business trip to New York for the summer. Alice was elated. _New York?_ Imagine all the plays she could see, the cafes she could write at, the days of wondering through the park. Her enjoyment was cut short at one thought: _Deb._ The entire summer? No Deb? Alice was already feeling like there was a rift forming between them, the couple of miles of water and land separating Clivesdale and Hatchetfield already straining their relationship.

Turns out, Alice had nothing to worry about. Her mother informed her in her next sentence that Alice would be staying with her father, Bill, for the rest of the summer. Alice’s heart wrenched. Looks like this had already been sorted out. She was seventeen- old enough to drive, get a car, start applying to colleges. Yet here she was, yet again, being thrown back and forth between her parents. Worse, she had to spend the next few months with her father. _Great._

On Tuesday, her bags were packed for the summer, her mother transferred a few hundred dollars to her bank account, kissed her cheek and put her on the bus to Hatchetfield. The ride was only about thirty minutes, but to Alice it felt like hours. Her music pounded in her ears and she scrolled through the script she was working on. She wondered if Deb would be happy to see her, as she decided she was going to surprise her girlfriend after she had finished school. It had been a few weeks since they last saw each other. It was when Alice came to Hatchetfield for her monthly bonding weekend with her Dad. That had been a disaster, as it usually was when she stayed with her father. He hadn’t let her go to Deb’s party, and they had a huge fight. As usual.

The bus arrived in front of the Starlight Theatre in Downtown Hatchetfield. Alice saw her Dad waiting, excitedly holding a small bouquet of flowers. Alice internally groaned, knowing he was going to make a scene.

“Alice!” Bill exclaimed, jogging up to his daughter, pulling her into a very tight embrace. Her arms remained limp at her side. “Oh, sweetie, this is going to be _so fun!_ I already have some plans set up for some father-daughter bonding time, won’t that be fun, huh sweetie?”

He spoke at a mile a minute as they gathered her two suitcases and rolled towards Bill’s small smart car. The suitcases barely fit in the back.

“So, Alice, the whole summer with your old dad! Are you excited?” Bill nudged her as they drove towards Bill’s house. Alice’s old house.

“Elated.” Alice answered sarcastically, scrolling through her Instagram. She refreshed the page, waiting for Deb to post something.

“C’mon, sweetie. Look, I know you would have preferred to go with your Mom to New York. But when she told me she was heading to the big Apple for the summer, I said to her _‘let me have Alice for the summer’_ , and to be honest I was surprised she agreed.”

“You convinced her to let me stay with you?” Alice asked, her anger building.

“Sure did, and it will be a lot of fun!” Bill answered excitedly.

Alice groaned. Her Mom was going to bring her to New York, and of course her Dad had to open his big stupid mouth. God, this sucked.

They pulled up to the house, Alice quickly grabbed her bags and stormed into the house, climbing the old staircase to her old room, throwing herself on the bed.

“Alice? I was thinking that we go out tonight, maybe we can go to Red Lobster?” Bill asked, peaking his head into her room.

“I’m seeing Deb tonight, Dad.” Alice said, getting up and starting to unpack her bags.

Bill sighed. “Ah, okay. Well, tomorrow you have to come to dinner with me. My friend Paul, you remember Paul, is having an engagement party. You’ll love it. You love Paul, he used to babysit you after school, remember?”

Alice stiffly nodded. “Yeah, okay Dad.”

Bill lingered for a minute before closing her door.

Alice really hated this room. It hadn’t changed in the years she had stopped living in it. The pink walls were harsh, the fluffy rug was dusty. Her single bed was too small for her. It felt suffocating.

She got changed into something cute, a skater skirt and a cropped baggy sweater and her converse. While it was summer now, the weather in Hatchetfield never got that warm during the afternoon and evenings. It was like a cold breeze always blew in from the darkness of the Witch Wood. She grabbed her side bag, that had her old leather-bound notebook, her headphones, her charger and some gum, then headed downstairs to start the walk to Hatchetfield High.

Her Dad yelled out a goodbye, which she ignored as she plugged in her music, walking down the streets of Hatchetfield.

The idea of staying here longer than a weekend was strange to Alice, who had become used to Clivesdale. Hatchetfield was tiny, really. Alice thinks she could probably name everyone who lived in the town. There were no secrets, no hiding. It felt claustrophobic, almost. Like she was always being watched.

Hatchetfield High was a small high school, made up of one large brick building and a few newer, smaller ones. She heads towards where Deb usually is after school, hanging out with the others that smoke.

School looks to have just let out, teenagers bustling around, causing her to wrap her arms around her middle and put her head down.

She almost makes it to the smoking area, which was just a little alley-like area behind the Art building.

“Alice?” a male voice asked.

Alice looked up to see Mr. Houston. Her eyebrows rise in surprise, “Hey, Mr. Houston.”

The man smiled slightly, he looked older than the last time she saw him. His haired was a bit prematurely grey, and his clothes a little scruffier. Alice remembers hearing about what happened to his Wife, Jane. It was big news, even in Clivesdale.

“Hey Kid, what are ya doing here? I haven’t seen ya since you were in freshman year.” Mr. Houston asks.

“Oh, I’m here to pick up my girlfriend? Deb?”

“Oh, right, yeah I know Deb. She’s probably out the back.” Mr. Houston nodded. “I’ll let ya get to it, but it was good seeing ya.”

“You too,” Alice smiled, genuinely. Mr. Houston had been a good teacher. She had been stuck in woodwork for a semester, and she had absolutely no skills with tools or hammering or sawing or anything like that. But Mr. Houston had helped her, he was exceedingly patient and kind when she messed up.

Out the back, there were about ten kids sitting around, smoking. She saw Deb sitting on the ground, rolling a joint and laughing along with her friends. She saw Daniel, Sally… and Ziggy. Ziggy, whose hair was this awesome blue, and in long braids that went down their back. With a nose ring, and a large graphic tee and combat boots. They looked so _cool_. And they were sitting so close to Deb.

Alice kicked herself for getting so jealous so quickly.

Should she even go over there? Deb looked like she was having fun. Alice didn’t want to spoil it. Maybe she should just text Deb to let her know she was coming? Yeah. Yeah that’s a better option. Alice quickly beelined out of there, heading towards the bleachers. She sat down, putting her head in her hands. Why was she even upset? Deb and Zig were friends. That’s allowed. That’s okay. Breathe, Alice.

She sighed, her arms wrapping around herself. It was probably around four, now. God, if she went home now, she’d have to tell her Dad about Deb, or worse, go to Red Lobster with him.

Sitting high on the bleachers, she pulled her notebook out. It was full of ideas, stories, images, newspaper cut-outs. It was her most treasured possession. She pulled out a pen and just let herself sketch. She wasn’t an artist, not by a long shot. Deb was the artist. Alice was more of a writer. But still, sometimes she needed to just get the images out of her head so she could describe them, view them.

“What ya drawing?”

Alice looked up to see a guy, around her age. He wore a leather jacket, a black shirt, fingerless gloves, and a flannel tied around his waist. His hair was curly and dark, contrasting with his pale skin. Alice thinks she recognized him; they might have gone to middle school together. 

She remained silent as he stomped over, his docs hitting the metal of the bleachers and the sound echoing out.

He grabbed the book from her hand.

“Hey!” she yelled, trying to grab it back.

He held it out of reach, looking at her doodles and sketches. “This is some pretty gruesome stuff.”

She finally snatched it back, glaring at this random dude. He smiled, seemingly not bothered by her expression.

“You an artist?” He asked, sitting down next to her.

“No.” Alice answered.

“She speaks!” He exclaimed. “Do you go here?”

“No. I used to.” Why was she talking to him?

“No shit, I thought I recognized you. Ally or whatever. Deb’s girlfriend from Clivesdale.”

Alice nodded; shoulders hunched over. She didn’t correct him.

“So, why are you out here and not with the rest of the pretentious art peeps?” He leaned back, his leather jacket and the bleachers making him look like an extra in Grease.

“Why would you care?” Alice asked. The wind from the Witch Wood that sat at the edge of the football field became stronger. Alice felt goosebumps appear on her legs.

“I don’t, really. Nothing interesting ever happens in this town, so I’m always looking for some entertainment. I get some from selling weed to your girlfriend and her buddies for double the price,” He smiled at her, his teeth surprisingly bright.

Alice, surprising herself, laughed at that. The guy’s eyebrow rose, and he started laughing too.

“What’s your name?” Alice asked, calming down.

“Ethan Green, nice to meet ya.” He held out a hand.

She shook it, “I’m Alice.”

He nodded. “So, you here visiting your girlfriend?”

Alice shook her head, “No, I’m staying here with my Dad for the summer. Which sucks, because my Mom is in New York, and all I’ve ever wanted is to live in New York, have my plays on Broadway, and maybe spending the summer there could have… nevermind. Doesn’t matter. I don’t even know why I’m telling you this.”

Ethan shrugs. “Sometimes it’s easier to talk to a stranger. But the New York thing, I get that. My girlfriend and I are saving up to hitch a ride the fuck out of here. Out to California.”

Alice watched as his face grew fond as he spoke about his girlfriend.

“She must be special.” Alice smiled at him. He nodded, his eyes looking in the distance.

“She’s a bitch, but I really fucking love her, ya know?”

Alice thought about Deb. “No, I don’t.” She slammed her hand over her mouth as soon as she said it. “I mean, I mean I do. I get…it.”

Ethan looked at her, eyebrow raised. “Look, next time they ask for something _special_ for one of their stupid parties, how about I give them some tic-tacs? Ya know, it’ll save me a few bucks.”

Alice smiled slightly. “If you do it, I won’t tell.”

Ethan checked his watch. “Alright, I have to go look after my girlfriend’s kid sister while she works.” He stood up, brushing off his jeans. He offered her a glover hand, which she took, standing up. “Thanks for the chat, Alice.”

Alice wrapped her arms around herself, shielding herself from the cold. “Right back at ya.”

“Here,” Ethan untied the flannel from around his waist. “Don’t say I never did anything nice.”

Alice tried to refuse but the nip of the cold won out, she pulled the flannel on. It seemed to be a few XLs, too big for even Ethan. Maybe it was his dad’s or something.

“Thanks.”

He saluted her and walked off, leaving Alice on the bleachers, the wind whipping her hair around.

“ _Alice?!_ ” A confused voice yelled out from the bottom of the bleachers.

Deb stood at the bottom of the bleachers; her beanie pulled tightly over her curly hair. Next to her was Ziggy and Daniel.

Alice picked up her bag and walked down the bleachers. Deb met her at the bottom.

“Hey?” Deb asked, a confused smile on her face. She pulled Alice into her arms, and Alice felt safer. She rested her forehead on Deb’s shoulder, letting out a sigh.

“Hey,” Alice pulled back, smiling.

“What are you doing here? Was that Ethan Green you were talking too?”

“Uh, yeah. We just were having a chat. He’s pretty nice.” Alice looked behind her then back to Deb.

“Okay, well I would stay away from him, honestly. Him and his GF are...” Deb said, her face serious. “Anyway, what are you doing here?”

“My Mom went on a business trip, so I’s staying here. With Dad. For the summer.”

Deb grinned, though she glanced at Ziggy, who stood a few feet away. “That’s awesome, babe. We’ll have a great summer.”

Alice nodded.

She hoped that was true.

* * *

Alice’s week continued to go downhill. Since Deb was busy with school during the day, and her Dad was at work, she spent all of Wednesday alone in bed, watching some crime docuseries on Netflix.

Her phone vibrated:

**Dad: Hey Alice, could you pick up the engagement present that I left at the engravers? It’s the engraving place in the Mall. I’m very busy at work, so I’ll have to go straight to the party, so if could meet me there? Sorry sweetie, you know how it is. I’ll send through the address. Love you! -Dad.**

Alice groaned. She had almost forgotten about the stupid engagement party. Now she had to go all the way to the mall and then make her own way to this random house. The party will be full of adults, and strangers and people asking about her plans for the future.

Alice looked at the time, it was almost five. The engagement party started at about seven. She would have to go to the mall now if she was going to make it in time. Looking through her wardrobe she looked for something semi-formal. That’s what would were to an engagement part, right? What if she was overdressed? Or underdressed? Ugh, this is a nightmare. She decided that because she was a teenager it was more acceptable to be underdressed. Alice settled on a spaghetti strap plain black dress and a denim jacket. She grabbed her bag and left the house, beginning her walk to the mall. Luckily Hatchetfield was a small place, so she didn’t have to go that far. It ended up being a about a twenty-minute walk, her feet aching a bit by the end of it.

Alice walked up the escalator towards the engravers, where a pimple-ridden teen was working.

“Uh, hello ma’am, what can I, uh, help you with today?” The teen said in a nasally voice.

“Oh, yes. So my dad left something here to get engraved for an engagement party and he asked me to pick it up-” Alice began.

“Woah, woah, woah lady. Slow down okay? Now, what was your dad’s name?” The kid interrupted, sniffing.

“Bill Woodward.”

“Okay ma’am. Uh, okay, it looks like uh, that’ll be ready in about an hour, ma’am.” The kids said tiredly.

Alice groaned inwardly, smiling outwardly. “Okay, I’ll come back in an hour.”

Alice left the engraving place, looking around the mall for something to do. She found a spot-on carpeted floor, in a corner where she wouldn’t be seen. She pulled out her notebook, flipping to the place where she had last been drawing. The one she was working on when she met Ethan.

Alice let out a slight gasp at what was before her, something she didn’t remember drawing. On the page was a picture of large, hungry teeth. Smiling. Surrounded by darkness, nothing in sight. The page seemed to be looking at her.

Alice closed her notebook quickly, her breath harsh. She stuffed it back into her book, standing up and heading into a random store to attempt to distract herself. She found herself in a pharmacy-like store, looking through the aisles of makeup and hair dye. She touched her own bleached hair that she had dyed a few months ago. She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

**Deb <3: Hey, I can’t hang out tonight, I’ve got plans with Zig.**

Alice felt her heart drop.

**Me: That’s fine. I have plans anyway.**

Alice turned her phone on silence, stuffing it into her back pocket. Tears prickled her eyes, and she wanted to hit herself at how petty she was being. She looked up at the rows of hair dye, eyes zeroing in on the bright pink dye. Behind her eyes, the images of large teeth flashed. She ignored it, grabbing two bottles of the dye, buying them and then going into the empty bathroom of the mall.

Without really thinking, she put the gloves on her hands and squirted the bright pink dye into her hands. She paused, looking at herself in the mirror, a few tears make their way down her face. She put the pink in her hair, slapping it in and combing it through roughly.

Her jacket was stained with pink by the end of it.

Alice stood, alone in the bathroom, for what seemed like eternity. Looking at herself, pink dye haphazardly soaking her hair.

“Uh, what the fuck?”

Alice spun around to see a pretty girl in a Toy Zone polo shirt. Her hair was a warm brown, hanging limply around her face. She seemed tired, probably from working a long shift. Alice thinks she recognized her from middle school as well.

The girl’s eyebrows were raised. “Shouldn’t you be doing that at home?”

Alice flushed, taking off the dye-soaked gloves and wiping away the tears from her face. She let out a forced laugh. “Yeah, probably.”

The girl tilted her head. “Give me a second.”

She went into one of that stalls, presumably to go to the bathroom. When she emerged, she washed her hands and grabbed the garbage can that sat in the corner of the bathroom. Tipping it upside down, she motioned for Alice to sit.

“I’ll help you wash it out.” She sighed, seemingly not happy about the situation.

Alice was shocked, but sat down, leaning her head back into the mall bathroom sink. The girl turned on the water, beginning to wash out the pink dye.

The girl whistled, impressed. “This is gonna be very pink.”

Alice sighed, wishing she made better decisions. “I don’t know why I did it.”

“Eh, we’ve all dyed our hair in a mental breakdown craze. My boyfriend once dyed his this disgusting orange colour. Luckily, I was there to fix it. But I think yours will suit you more than the orange suited him.”

Alice smiled, laughing lightly. “What’s your name?”

“Lex. You?”

“Alice.”

Lex nodded, grabbing the dye box and pulling out the conditioner that was included. She massaged it through Alice’s hair gently.

“Why are you doing this?” Alice asked.

Lex shrugged. “My good deed for the year. Maybe Santa will bring me something other than coal this year.”

Alice accepts this, though maybe there was more of a reason beneath the surface.

“Alright, over to the hand dryer.” Lex said, wiping her hands on her shirt.

Lex dried Alice’s newly pink hair under the hand dryer, doing her best to comb out the tangles. Alice looked at her phone, seeing that she was late to pick up the engagement gift.

“Fuck,” She groaned, standing up. “Sorry, I have to go pick up this stupid thing for my dad. Thank you for all the help, Lex.”

Lex nodded, “All good. Don’t say I never did anything nice.”

Alice has a small sense of Déjà vu, remember that Ethan said something similar yesterday. Alice nodded, grabbing her bag and leaving Lex in the bathroom.

Alice went past the engravers, grabbing the wrapped gift. The teenager gave her hair a strange look, before shrugging. She left the mall, and brought up Google Maps on her phone, seeing that the address was only about a fifteen-minute walk.

Alice walked leisurely towards the address, turning up the collar of her dye stained denim jacket. She looked down at her hair, which was curling slightly as the rest of it airdried in the cold wind. It really was pink, not hot pink but a warmer, almost childlike pink. She looked into her phone’s camera, trying to smooth down the curling baby hairs.

By the time she reached the house, she was still early. It was about six, the party wouldn’t start for about an hour. Damn.

“Alice?” A familiar voice called out.

Alice looked up to see Mr. Houston in the garage of the house, unpacking ice and soda from the back of his old mustang.

Alice walked over, “Hey Mr. Houston.”

“Whadda ya doin’ here?” He asked. Alice was surprised to see that he was in a dress shirt, his face cleanly shaven.

“Oh, uh, I’m supposed to be going to an engagement party. For my dad’s friend, Paul?” Alice said.

Mr. Houston smiled, “Well you’re in the right place. Paul’s my, uh, well I guess my future brother in law? Who knows. Grab that bag of ice and we’ll head inside.”

Alice nodded, grabbing the bag of ice and following Mr. Houston into his house.

“Mr. Houston, where should I put this?” Alice asked when they entered the kitchen.

“Just set it on the bench. And no more of this “Mr. Houston” stuff, alright? Call me Tom.” Mr. Houston, _Tom_ , said.

Alice nodded, putting the ice on the bench. “Can I help with anything?”

Tom was about to say something when a beautiful woman with long red hair walked into the kitchen. “Tom, Honey, can you- Oh, hello?”

The woman smiled at Alice. “Hello, I’m Becky Barnes.”

Becky held out her hand, Alice shook it. “I’m Alice, I’m Bill Woodword’s kid. Uh, I’m a bit early.”

“That’s alright, we need some extra hands. The engaged couple aren’t even here yet. I bet they’ll be late, mark my words.” Becky laughed.

“I was just asking if there was anything I could do to help?” Alice asked, setting down the present and her bag on a table.

“I could use some help with getting the food ready. Tom’s useless in the kitchen, honestly. Tom, sweetie, do you want to go help set up outside with Tim?”

Tom nodded, kissing Becky on the cheek as he left. Alice was happy that he’d found someone else to spend his time with. Alice had heard her Dad gossiping about Becky Barnes and Tom a few months ago, saying how they went way back in time.

For the next hour or so, Alice helped Becky set up snack plates, bowls of chips and salads. Alice brought them out to the large backyard. Which had beautiful grass and a nice barbeque area. Alice met Tim, Tom’s ten-year-old son, who was softly spoken. He and Tom had spent the last hour setting up fairy lights that strung overhead, illuminated the backyard as the sun set. There were tables scattered around, chairs and a fire going in the fire pit. It really was lovely, Alice had to admit. Maybe tonight wouldn’t be that bad.

“Oh god, hey, I’m so sorry we’re late to set up- oh wow.” A small brunette woman burst through the back gate, Paul following while holding a few bottles of champagne. His fiancée, Alice assumed, stared in awe at the transformed backyard.

“Aunt Emma!” Tim went over to the women, Emma. “Do you like it?”

“Yeah, little dude, it looks amazing.” Emma hugged Tim.

Slowly but surely, guests began to arrive, including her Dad. Alice stuck to the side-lines, smiling at people awkwardly. She only looked up when her father called her name, motioning for her to come over to where he was.

“Paul, Emma, this is my daughter, Alice.” Bill said proudly. He looked at her, seemingly only now realizing that her hair was a bright pink. “Alice, when did you-”

Alice interrupted him, smiling at the couple. “Hey, I’m Alice. Congrats on the engagement.”

Emma smiled, “Yeah, thanks. I heard you helped set this all up,”

Alice nodded.

“Well thanks for helping out. I would have been here earlier if Paul didn’t forget to get alcohol yesterday.” Emma elbowed Paul, though her smile was soft.

Paul laughed bashfully, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, sorry about that. But hey, uh, Alice, what are in you into these days, huh? Last time I saw you, it was my little pony and Harry Potter.”

“I write, actually. Mostly stuff for the stage, you know.” Alice answered.

“Not musicals, I hope.” Paul laughed, “I hate musicals,”

Emma rolled her eyes, “I’m sure they’re great, even if they are musicals.”

Alice laughed a little, “No, they’re mostly just plays. I’m not one for musicals, really.”

Alice talked awkwardly with her dad and the couple, before slipping out of the party and back into the house. She pulled out her phone, going onto Deb’s Instagram, finding a new post. It looked like Deb and her friends, including Ziggy, all went down to the lake for a bonfire. There were photos of Alice and Ziggy getting closer and closer. Alice turned off her phone, upset. Again.

“Hey, Alice?” Tim walked in, looking concerned for the older girl. “Are you okay?”

“Ha,” Alice exclaimed, “Yeah. It’s just a rough night.”

Tim nodded, understanding. “You want to come watch Alice in Wonderland with me?”

“The original?”

Tim nodded, “Yeah.”

Alice nodded and followed him into the living room, sitting on one of the couches as Tim turned on Alice in Wonderland. She felt herself get sleepy as the animated images bounced in front of her, until she eventually did fall asleep.

_Alice,_

_Aaaaa-llice,_

_C’mon Alice,_

_I know you can hear meeee_

_Wake up!_

Alice woke up with a yell, her heart pounding.

“Alice, sweetie, it’s okay,” Bill said.

“Wha-, where?” Alice took in her surroundings. It looked much darker than before, and she was in the passenger seat of her Dad’s car, rounding the turn towards their house. “How long was I out?”

“Only about an hour. You must have been tired.” Bill reassured her. “We’re almost home, then you can go straight to bed, okay?”

Alice nodded. They pulled up to house, getting out of the car and heading inside. Alice began to make her way up the stairs when her Dad stopped her.

“I, uh, I like your new hair, Al-pal.”

Alice smiled at her Dad, a genuine one. “Thanks, Dad.”

She went up to bed, hoping for a restful sleep.

* * *

The rest of the week passed slowly, with Alice barely seeing Deb. She only got a text on Friday morning inviting her to a huge blow-out at the Head Cheerleader’s cabin in the Witch Wood. Apparently, the entire school was going. It wasn’t Alice’s scene, but she hadn’t seen Deb since Monday. And with Ziggy there, Alice had to make sure Deb didn’t… well. Alice didn’t want to admit that was why she was going, but deep down she knew that was the reason.

Alice waisted the day away until she had to get ready for the party. She wrote about three sentences on her screenplay before deleting two of them and then deciding to take a nap. She woke up in time to start getting ready before Deb came to pick her up.

Alice slightly curled her pink hair, applied a small amount of makeup and spent thirty minutes trying to figure out what to wear. She settled on an oversized graphic tee that she tied, and a plaid skater skirt and some black stockings. She decided on her black boots because the Witch Wood got cold at night. At the last second, she also grabbed Ethan’s green flannel shirt, which she shrugged on. She figured if the entire school was going, and there were drunk teenagers, Ethan might be there to sell his overpriced stock. Deb texted that she was outside, and Alice quickly went down the stairs, yelling a goodbye to her day before exiting the house.

Outside, Deb sat in the passenger seat of Daniel’s car, with Sally and Ziggy in the back. Alice took a deep breath and put on a smile, climbing into the cramped backseat. 

“Hey babe,” Deb said.

“Hey everyone,” Alice said as she got into the car, pulling on her seat belt.

She stayed silent most of the ride. She laughed when there was a joke, made sounds of agreement and disagreement when needed. It was hard for her in these social situations. She really wasn’t very good at them. Ziggy was next to her, with their bright smile, careless laughter and actually really funny jokes, Alice understood why Deb liked Ziggy. Alice was finding it really hard not to like Ziggy.

The cabin that the party was being held at was deep in the Witch Wood, and it was only a few minutes from the beach of the lake. As they pulled up, it was dark and the trail leading to the house was jammed pack with cars. They parked a little further away, in hopes they wouldn’t been boxed in by other cars. It was around eight, and the party was already in full swing. As the group of teenagers walked up to the house, they were met with groups of teenagers hanging around outside, near a about five kegs scattered around the tree line. The ‘cabin’ was more of a mansion. It was two stories, made with beautiful wood, a huge deck expanded out of three walls of the house, with fire pits and in-floor seating areas. People were smoking, dancing, making out. It was a quintessential teen party.

Alice followed Deb like she was the white rabbit, down the rabbit hole. They found a few people that Deb and the others knew, who had found themselves in one of the sunken lounge areas of the deck, a fire pit in the center.

They began to pull out bongs and weed, and Alice excused herself to go inside to get a drink. She didn’t mind that Deb smoked; it was legal in a bunch of states. But Alice had asthma and didn’t really want to get second hand high. Honestly, she didn’t know if that was a thing. She just felt really awkward being the only one left out.

Inside the cabin was more intense than the outside; there were lights flashing and people dancing and making out, everyone was packed in tight. Alice saw the yellow light of the kitchen, she pushed herself through the crowd until she arrived at the kitchen, where the entre island was covered in what seemed like hundreds of bottles of liquor and soft drink. She grabbed a red solo cup and looked at the options, really confused on what to get.

“Hey, sweetie,” A sickly honey-like voice interrupted her. It was one of the cheerleaders, Alice followed her on Instagram. She really was beautiful, almost inhumanly so. Her curly hair was styled perfectly, her warm dark skin shone in even the terrible overhead lighting of the kitchen. Her lips were so glossy, her eyes smoky and eyelashes long.

“Um, hey. Hello.” Alice said, blushing. She was a queer teenager, and someone this beautiful was almost like being slapped in the face.

The girl laughed, though her smile seemed to stretch just a little bit too wide. “You need help picking out a drink? How about I make you one, then we can go upstairs and drink together?”

Alice felt her heart beating fast, but not out excitement. “Uh, I don’t think I oughta.”

“C’mon honey, I only bite a little,” the cheerleader smiled, her smiled too wide. Inhumanly so.

Alice felt herself step backwards.

“Hey, is this chick bothering you?”

Alice turned to see Lex, in a t-shirt and jeans. Her arms were crossed, her hip cocked outward.

Alice moved over towards her quickly, linking her arm through hers. “Uh, Lex, weren’t we, um didn’t we have to do something?”

Alice didn’t let her eyes leave the cheerleader, who was frowning now.

Lex, catching on. “Yeah, yeah, we have to go meet Ethan outside. Let’s go.”

Lex pulls Alice out of the kitchen, towards the exit to the garden. Out there, Alice saw Ethan Green sitting on the steps of the deck, leaning back like he had on bleachers a few days ago.

“Ethan,” Lex said, he turned around. “This is Alice.”

Lex sat down and pulled Alice down with her.

Ethan smiled, “Yeah, we’ve met actually. She’s the chick I met on the bleachers.”

Lex’s eyebrows rose, “No shit? She’s the chick whose hair I washed out in the mall bathroom.”

Ethan laughed slightly, “Yeah, I could guess. I like the color, by the way.”

Alice touched her hair, smiling at Ethan. “Yeah, thanks. I should have put two and two together, that you guys were dating.”

They sat in a comfortable silence, Ethan offering his flask to Alice, who took a long sip.

“So, you’re dating Deb?” Lex asked, curious. Her hair was like amber, lit by the nearby fire.

“Yeah,” Alice sighed, “Yeah, at least I think so. I’m not sure lately.”

“I mean, no offence or anything, but I’ve seen her and Ziggy hanging around each other a lot lately.” Ethan said, ruffling his own hair. “Whenever I sell to them, they’re almost always together.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Alice sighed, lying back on the cold deck.

She popped her head up, “Ethan, you want this back?” she motioned to the flannel she was wearing.

“I thought that looked familiar,” Lex said. “You should keep it on, otherwise you’ll get cold.”

“What she said.” Ethan agreed.

Alice nodded. She lay for a moment before getting up, smiling apologetically at the couple. “I really should head back to Deb. Will I see you around the party?”

“Probably not for long. We’re staying at my place and we have to get back to Lex’s little sis.” Ethan said.

Lex nodded, “Yeah we were just here to sell overpriced pills to rich teenagers.”

Alice smiled, nodding. “Well, I hope I’ll see you guys again at some point this summer.”

They both nodded. “It’s a small town, so probably.” Lex said.

Alice waved goodbye, feeling a pull of disappointment that she had to leave.

When she got back to Deb, it was like she hadn’t left at all. The next hour or so was spent trailing after Deb, who was moving around the party talking to people. Alice just stood next to her, Deb’s arm around her, smiling robotically. At least they had moved inside, the coldness of the Witch Wood was much more prominent when inside.

“Deb, we just got some stuff from Ethan. Wanna go down to the lake and have some fun?” Daniel wiggled his eyebrows, holding up a small baggie of small pills that looked curiously like tic-tacs. Alice smiled knowingly.

Deb looked down at Alice, “You okay with that?”

Alice knew she wasn’t invited to go take drugs with them, or maybe Deb just assumed she wouldn’t. So she just smiled, nodding. “I’ll hang here. I’ll let you know if I catch a lift home.”

Deb nodded, giving her a quick kiss then heading off with Daniel and Sally. Ziggy was nowhere in sight, which odd, but Alice wasn’t too worried. It was a big party. Alice stood alone in a crowded group of people, feeling hot and sticky from other people’s sweat. She needed to get some fresh air, or some space.

Alice spied some stairs that lead to the second floor. When she was outside, she saw some balconies that she could maybe hide out on. So she squeezed her way through the party and up the staircase.

Upstairs was just as big as the downstairs, with a second loungeroom and at least ten doors. It was quitter up here, mostly just couples looking for spaces to make out. Alice knocked on a few doors, most of them were occupied. She found a free room at the end of the corridor.

It was a simple spare bedroom, with a large window looking out towards the lake. Outside the window was a balcony. Relieved, Alice opened the sliding door and sat down on the soft, cold couch that was sitting out there. She pulled out her phone and looked at her messages. Only a couple from Dad, otherwise her inbox was empty.

Which brought her back to her shitty, shitty night.

Alice startled as she heard the door of the room opening. She turned and ducked slightly, trying to hide. She looked over the back of the couch to see Ziggy. Was Deb with them? Oh. No, it wasn’t Deb, but the cheerleader that was bugging Alice earlier.

They were on the bed, heavily making out, taking clothes off. Alice felt herself flush, not knowing what to do. Should she just wait out here? Or knock on the window?

She looked back to see the cheerleader pulling back, that large smile on her face. Ziggy looked like they were in a trance, eyes cloudy as they looked at the cheerleader.

Suddenly, like a glitch in a video game, the cheerleader’s face changed. Her eyes, nose, all her facial features were gone, except for a huge mouth, with monstrous teeth, glinting in the yellow light from the lamps. The thing, the cheerleader, opened its mouth, splitting its face. Then at inhuman speed, it bit down on Ziggy’s neck. The sound was horrible, ripping. Blood pooled out of Ziggy’s neck. They went limp.

Alice felt her body shaking, her eyes were wide. Did that happen? Was that real?

She blinked and saw that the thing was still sucking on Ziggy’s neck, like some sort or Alien vampire.

Alice need to get the fuck out of here.


	2. Chapter Two

Okay. Okay. Okay. Alice needed to get the fuck out of here. _Okay._

She looked around the balcony, seeing a drainpipe going down the side of the wood. It didn’t look sturdy, but it was better that having to go back into the house with that _thing_. Alice slowly slid down the couch, crawling over towards the edge of the balcony. When she was out of sight, she let out a breath, pushing herself up against the house, the window right next to her.

“ _Hmmm, very nice.”_ Said a voice, though it didn’t sound like the sickly-sweet voice of the cheerleader. This voice was screechy, almost giggly, with a slight lisp.

Alice felt her heart creep into her throat as she heard the door open. She almost yelled, _No! Don’t go in there!_

“Ashley, oh my god, I told you to be _quick_ with this one! We need to get them there soon.” The voice of another girl said.

Alice held her breath and snuck a peek through the window. Inside, it was the head cheerleader, Alice remembers her from freshman year. Her name is Jenna Forman.

When Alice looked inside, she saw that bitey-cheerleader’s, Ashley’s, face had returned to normal. Alice wished she could say that it had all been a hallucination, if it weren’t for the blood on the bed and Ziggy’s lifeless body thrown over carelessly.

Jenna flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder, sighing, annoyed. “Dammit Ashley, you couldn’t be neat? I’m going to have to buy new sheets. Ugh, never mind. We need to get the body outside. Chuck it over the balcony and then take it to the cave.”

Alice had no clue what they were talking about, but when the word “Balcony” was uttered, she sprung up as quietly as she could, desperate to get out of there. She grabbed the pipe and half climbed; half slid down to the ground. Later she would marvel at the fact she even made it. She heard the voices of the girls from the top of the balcony. Before she could think, she jumped into the hedges that were planted along the side of the house, curling up and peering through the leaves.

_Splat_

Alice held in a scream as the body of Ziggy was dropped off the balcony onto the ground. She looked around to see if anyone else was around to see that- but they seemed to be in a fenced-off garden area of the cabin. Just her luck.

The smell of blood was thick in the air, making her gag. Suddenly, the two cheerleaders jumped from the balcony, their feet leaving dents in the ground as they landed smoothly. They picked up the body and dragged it off into the Witch Wood. Alice didn’t know how long she sat in the bushes for, but it felt like a long time. Timidly, she climbed out of the bushes, the branches scratching her arms and catching on her tights. Before she could think, she pulled out her phone, taking a picture of the two pairs of indented footprints and the pool of blood. She would have to bring this to the police at some point, right? Ziggy’s family would come looking for them.

Alice booked it- running and weaving through the garden, she jumped the gate out of pure adrenaline. She only slowed down when she was back in the light of the fire pits, surrounded by people. She needed a ride out of here. Pulling out her phone she tried to call Deb, but it went to voicemail. Fuck.

“Alice? You okay?”

She glanced around, only to see Ethan and Lex looking like they were about to leave. Alice ran to them, grabbing their arms.

“You have a car?” Alice asked, in a hurry.

“Uh, yeah, why?” Ethan asked, glancing at Lex, confused at Alice’s shift in mood.

“We need to go. _Now._ C’mon!” Alice pulled them as she started to run down towards where the cars were parked along the dirt road tree line.

She slowed down to a jog, looking behind her to see Ethan and Lex catching up to her.

“Which one’s yours?” Alice asked. Ethan pulled out his keys and open his car, the lights flashing a little further down. Alice went back to running, practically throwing herself in the backseat.

Ethan and Lex got in the car, still looking really confused on what was happening.

“Uh, Alice, what the fuck going on?” Lex asked, turning back in her seat. Ethan started the car, driving away from the house and towards town.

Alice breathed deeply, putting a hand on her belly to ground her. She just shook her head, trying to even her breath.

Lex looked concerned but didn’t push for an answer. “You wanna stay at ours tonight? Ethan’s dad is out of town, so my sister and I are crashing with him for the weekend.”

“I don’t want to intrude,” Alice said.

Lex shook her head, “Nah, you wouldn’t be, we were just gonna get a little drunk and watch a shitty movie. And hey, it’s just for tonight. You seem a little freaked out.”

Alice laughed dryly, “Yeah, you could say that. But, if that’s okay, I’ll stay with you guys.”

Lex nodded and turned back to sit properly in her seat. Alice stared out the window, then she texted her Dad to let him know she was staying at a friend’s house (not Deb’s, she had to specify). Lex opened a window, lighting a cigarette and passing it to Ethan. The smell of cigarette smoke and the bumpiness of the dirt road slowly lulled an exhausted Alice to sleep.

* * *

_Alice sat in a field of grass, that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Looking down, she saw that she was in a bright blue tea-cup dress, with a small blue apron._

_There was movement behind her, turning she saw a black rabbit. It was thin, gnarly, with pinkish eyes. It began to run towards the horizon. Alice’s feet carried her, she ran as fast as she could after the rabbit, her bare feet slipping on the grass._

_Suddenly, she bumped into something. She had reached the horizon, but instead of sky, it was a wall painted to look like the sky. It stretched all the way up, up, up into the darkness above her. She was trapped. But where did the rabbit go?_

_Alice looked along the wall, only to find a small window. Outside the window was a giant black and white chess board, suspended in nothingness. On it, the rabbit sat. It turned towards Alice, with a large smile._

_Then it spoke. “Alice, what are you looking for?”_

_“Answers.” She said, banging angrily at the window._

_The rabbit laughed, it’s huge mouth unhinging and opening wide. Suddenly, a hand reached out from inside the rabbit’s mouth, and started to pull it’s self out of the rabbit, like some sort of sick magic trick. Alice watched as Ziggy pulled themself out of the rabbit’s mouth. They were covered in blood, an inhuman smile on their face._

_“You’ll never find them.” The rabbit’s voice echoed._

_Alice screamed._

* * *

Alice was screaming.

“Please stop!” A small voice pleaded.

Alice gasped, catching her breath. She was drenched in sweat, her hair stuck to her head. She blinked, getting used to the sunlight that streamed into where she was sleeping. She evened out her breath, feeling the surface around her as she squeezed her eyes shut. Alice felt a rough blanket thrown over her, a bumpy corduroy couch.

“It’s okay, now. Nightmare time is over.” The younger voice said.

Alice blinked again, her eyes adjusting to the light this time. She was in a lounge room. Old fashioned, mismatched couches and a fireplace. Large windows letting in direct morning light. She seemed to be on a couch in the center of the room.

Alice glanced beside her, jumping slightly at the image of a small girl. She must have been around twelve or thirteen. Her hair was damp, most likely from a shower. She wore baggy overalls and a stiped shirt, a small, white, ukulele clutched in her hands.

“Hello,” Alice breathed out, trying to smile. “Sorry for… screaming.”

The girl shrugged. “That’s okay. It’s done now.”

Alice assumed this was Lex’s little sister.

“What’s your name?” Alice asked, sitting up further and wiping the sleep from her eye.

“Hannah.” The girl said, looking down at her feet.

“Hey, Hannah. I’m Alice. Have you had breakfast?”

That’s how Alice found herself in Ethan’s kitchen, pulling out eggs, flour, sugar, anything really, to make a tangible breakfast.

“You like pancakes?” Alice turned back to look at where Hannah was sitting at the island in the middle of the kitchen. Hannah nodded, continuing to strum on her guitar.

Alice smiled, searching for bowls and plates and something she could stir with. She piled everything on the kitchen bench, getting to work.

“That’s a lovely song.” Alice commented as she stirred the sticky mixture together.

Hannah smiled slightly, “I have to keep playing them, otherwise I might forget how they go.”

Alice nodded, humming along to the tune that Hannah played. She slabbed some butter in a pan and went to work pouring and flipping pancakes.

“What grade are you in, Hannah?” Alice asked while she flipped pancakes.

“I learn at home, with Miss Holloway.” Hannah answered.

“Ah, you’re homeschooled. That must be nice, not having to deal with people. I go to Clivesdale High; it really sucks. I’m hoping to get a scholarship so I can go to New York.”

“We’re going to California. Once everything is done.” Hannah said.

“That sounds lovely. Very sunny.”

They sat in comfortable silence as Alice finished up the pancakes. She plated them, sitting next to Hannah as they both began to eat. Alice didn’t realize how hungry she was until the first bite hit her tongue.

“Lex is nice to you.” Hannah said suddenly, after finishing her pancakes. Her large brown eyes looked up at Alice, wide and earnest. “Webby says you’re like me.”

“Who’s Webby?” Alice asked, taking Hannah’s plate and putting it in the sink.

“Webby is my friend. She says you’re like me.”

Alice turned to Hannah, tilting her head. “What else does Webby say?”

“Black and White. Rabbit. Tricky.” Hannah said, her voice getting more and more tense.

Alice noticed, and then attempted to sooth her. “Hey, hey it’s okay. Sorry. How about I braid your hair, huh?”

Hannah nodded slightly, still tense.

Alice pulled out the hairbands she kept always tucked in her bra, for emergencies. Combing Hannah’s hair gently, she separated it into two halves and began to French-braid Hannah’s long chestnut hair.

They stayed silent; the only sounds were the birds outside of Ethan’s house.

“I don’t like your hair.” Hannah said as Alice finished tying off her braids.

“Why not?” Alice asked lightly, brushing her hair self-consciously.

“I don’t know. Bad.” Hannah said, looking down at her hands.

Alice nodded, though she didn’t really understand. “That’s okay, not everyone likes pink. Hey, do you have an iPhone charger?”

Hannah nodded, going upstairs to get a charger for Alice. Alice moved back to the living room, where she found her phone and bag set neatly next to the couch. She folded up the blanket she used last night, putting the through pillows back onto the couch. It was the least she could do, really.

Hannah came back with the phone charger, which Alice took gratefully. She searched for an outlet and then plugged her phone in. When it came back to life, she wasn’t that surprised to see about 20 missed calls from her Dad. Bracing for impact, she hit callback and waited for her him to pick up.

“Alice? Alice?” Her Dad’s voice was frantic.

“Yeah, Dad,” Alice said.

“Young lady, why didn’t you answer your phone?” Bill sounded exasperated.

“I just woke up, Dad. And my phone ran out of charge. I’m fine. And it’s only, like, nine o’clock.” Alice said, feeling guilt creep into her mind.

“Alice, I had a morning hike for us planned. I’m taking the day off work so we can spend time together! We’re already behind schedule.” Bill continued to ramble out the plans he had laid out for the day.

Alice sighed. How could she distract him? “Hey, uh, Dad, why don’t we go get breakfast? How about Beanies? I hear they make good bacon.”

“What about the schedule?” Bill asked, though his voice was less tense.

“How about we just… talk?” Alice asked, wrapping her arms around herself as she sat on the ground of the living room.

“That, that sounds great, sweetie!” Bill sounded elated; she could picture his excited face. “Beanies, you said?”

“Yeah,” Alice said, “I’ll meet you there. I think I'm close to town anyways. In about twenty?”

“I’ll get there early so we have a good seat. You know Emma works there? I’m sure she’ll give us a discount, I mean, that engraved serving plate I got them? I’ll be in the good books.”

They agreed to meet at Beanies in about twenty minutes. Alice got up form her spot next to the outlet, then looked down at herself. The clothes she was wearing smelt like campfire and dirt.

“Hannah, is your sister still asleep?” Alice asked.

“Uh-huh.” Hannah paused playing her ukulele.

Alice didn’t want to wake them. “Could you do me a favor and grab me a shirt and pants, like jeans? I think we’d be the same size. I’ll bring them back as soon as I can.” Alice assured the girl.

Hannah nodded, heading up the stairs again. She came back down with a black shirt and some ripped jeans. Alice thanked her, going into the bathroom to get change and wash her mouth out.

Alice took off the other clothes, stuffing them into her small handbag and pulling the shirt and jeans on. The shirt was large on her, it was probably Ethan’s, but the jeans fit fine. She still looked like a mess, but at least she didn’t smell as bad.

Exiting the bathroom, Alice grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. She wrote out a message on it, saying that she’ll return the clothes as soon as she could, and thanking the other teens for helping her out last night. Before second-guessing herself, she wrote down her phone number at the bottom of the page.

“Could you give this to your sister, when she wakes up?” Alice asked, pulling her shoes on and slinging her bag over her shoulder. She handed Hannah the note, the smaller girl nodding and setting it down next to her.

“Nice to meet you, Hannah.” Alice smiled, waving goodbye as she rushed out the door.

Turns out she was closer to town than she first thought, as when she exited the house, she saw that next to it was a small garage with a sign that read Tony’s Automobile Repair. The repair place was just a few streets down from Downtown.

It was relatively busy for a Friday, but Alice suspected that since summer was about to start, a lot of kids opted to skip the last day. Alice had finished her school year a week before, which she was grateful for. It seemed so far away now.

Images of last night flashed in her head, of Ziggy, of the Cheerleaders and of the rabbit. Was it a dream? It didn’t seem real. Shaking herself off, she decided that she needed some coffee before confronting the idea of murderous, alien cheerleaders.

“Spare change for homeless?” The homeless man asked, as she passed. She smiled at him, shaking her head.

“Sorry, I don’t have my wallet.” Alice was telling the truth, though she felt bad. Not many people ever payed attention to the man. He had been there as long as Alice could remember, seemingly apart of the community as much as anyone else.

He nodded, understandingly. “Have a good day, ma’am.”

Alice kept walking, but she glanced over her shoulder at the man. Something about him seemed… familiar? Similar? She didn’t know, but she promised herself that she’d go back to give him some change and ask for his name.

Beanies was a small, hole in the wall café. It was only a block from Starbucks, but they both seemed to get a fair amount of business. The inside was almost hipster-ish in its layout, with exposed brick, odd couches, and a certain old-fashioned vibe to it. Alice knew that this wasn’t on purpose, just a lack of change of décor since the early 80’s. Alice inhaled the coffee smell, already waking up slightly as it entered her nose.

“Alice!”

She looked over to a corner booth where her Dad had set up shop. He was wearing a causal polo shirt and jeans, which Alice didn’t see him in often. Walking over, she slapped a smile on her face and then sat down.

“Hey Dad.” Alice smiled. She sat on the opposite side of the booth, facing out towards the rest of the coffee shop. “Have you ordered?”

“No, not yet. I was waiting on you,” He said, “Have a look, the eggs benedict looks good.”

Alice hummed in response, opening up the small menu. She had been trying to keep up the vegetarian thing, mostly out of moral guilt. She saw they had a nice sounding avocado toast, with a side of your choosing.

“Hey Dad, have you decided?” Alice asked, closing her menu. “I’ll go up and order.”

“Alright, sweetie. I’ll have the big breakfast with a Caramel Frap.”

Alice took her father’s menu and card and went up to counter to order. She saw that Emma was working, seemingly over it.

“Hey, Alice, right? Bill’s kid.” Emma said when Alice came up in line.

Alice smiled. “Yeah, he’s right over there. Father-daughter bonding.”

Emma nodded knowingly. She put on a large, kind of fake smile and waved at Bill. “How bad is it?”

Alice laughed, “Not too bad, I’m honestly just tired. Party last night.”

Emma smiled, “Ah, the good old days of high school parties. What a time. Anyway, what can I get ya?”

Alice rattled off their orders, including a nice black coffee for herself. Emma told her she’d be right back with the coffees, so Alice stepped to the side of the counter and waited. The bell rang, indicating that someone had walked in. Alice looked up from her phone and stared in shocked fear.

Through the entrance of Beanies, a group of Cheerleaders from Hatchetfield High walked in. It seemed to be most of the team. Alice clutched her phone tightly as the moved up to the counter next to her to buy drinks. She breathed out unevenly and steps a little further back from the group.

However, it seemed that the universe continued to fuck with her, as she saw at the back of the group of cheerleaders was Ziggy, wearing a blue cheer crop top and track pants. Their hair was pulled into a high-pony tail, and they were talking with Ashley, the very cheerleader that Alice saw take a bite out of Ziggy just a few hours ago.

“Alice? Alice?”

Alice turned and saw Emma offering two coffees, an eyebrow raised. “You okay?”

Alice just nodded, taking the coffees quickly and retreating back to her table. Bill looked up and smiled taking his coffee from her. Alice sat down in the booth, watching the group of cheerleaders order.

“Is that Grace Chasity?” Alice asked, recognizing one of the cheerleaders.

Bill turned to look, “Oh yeah, that’s Grace.”

“She looks so… different.” Alice said carefully.

Bill nodded, “I was talking to her Mom at Church, and she says it was like a miracle. Grace came home one day and told her she had joined the cheer squad. Her eyesight healed on its own, she doesn’t need her glasses anymore. She gained all this confidence. You know, I’m really happy for Grace, she seems to have finally found herself.”

Alice nodded, eyebrows furrowed. “Yeah, good for her.”

As the group of teenagers left, Grace looked back to Alice and smiled with too many teeth.

Alice wasn’t hungry anymore. 

* * *

When Alice finally got home, she was exhausted. Her dad had dragged her to the local museum after they had breakfast, and they spent like two hours there. Alice could barely stand, and she still hadn’t showered.

Heading upstairs to her room, she grabbed her pyjamas and headed to the bathroom to shower. She had convinced her Dad that instead of going to Watcher World, what if they just stayed in and had a movie day? He agreed, seeming very shocked at Alice’s suggestions for activities. Her Dad dropped her off at the house and went to the Video Rental Place, (that’s right, Hatchetfield is the only place in the world that still has a DVD rental place) and to pick up snacks and pizza. That gave her about an hour alone.

The shower felt like heaven. She scrubbed head to toe, until her skin was red and raw. She thought about Ziggy, about Grace. Her brain was running in circles, she needed to get her thoughts onto paper. Getting out of the shower, she put on her PJs and grabbed her notebook and pen and began writing.

_What I know:_

_I saw Ziggy get bitten by a cheerleader last night. I saw the cheerleaders throw Ziggy’s body off the second story balcony. I have a photo of the footprints and blood._

_I also saw Ziggy alive and at Beanies, with the possibly murderous cheerleaders. They were wearing a cheer uniform, and they looked alive and unharmed._

_(am I insane? Did I hallucinate all of it?) (No, I couldn’t have. I have photographic evidence.)_

_Grace Chasity is now a cheerleader, no longer a nerdy prude. Eyesight is healed, acne gone, teeth- too many._

Alice looked at her notes. They looked like the notes of a rambling crazy person.

She pulled out her phone and looked at the photo (which she had moved to a locked album) again. Clear as day: two sets of footprints, at least a few inches into the ground. Splatters of blood on the grass of the garden.

“I know I’m not crazy.” She whispered to herself.

Alice flipped back a few pages in her notebook, remembering she saw something in there a few days ago at the mall that scared her. She came to the page, which was filled with an image of large, laughing, mocking, hungry teeth. Surrounded by frantic scribbles of her pen. She flipped back even further, and found another page, with the same image on it. Flipping back even further, back to at least February, she found more.

More pages filled with the teeth.

Finally, she found a page that just had one word on it:

_Nibblenephim._

She shut her notebook fast, throwing it across the room like it was going to hurt her.

“Alice!” Her Dad’s voice called from downstairs.

“Coming!” Alice got up quickly, looking at the notebook in the corner of her room one before slamming her door shut and heading down the stairs.

She smelt the pizza as she entered the kitchen, her stomach rumbling. Her dad was putting chips and candy into various different bowls. Alice paused for a second, just watching her dad get the food ready for their movie day.

“Al-pal, how about you get the living room set up and choose a movie? I’ll get into my comfy clothes.” Her dad said.

Alice nodded, smiling to herself. She went to the hallway closet and pulled out two duvets, some fluffy blankets and some extra pillows. It was like second nature to her. When her parents were still together, they would have a movie night once a month, and they always had ice cream for dinner.

Arms full of blankets, Alice went to the living room and threw them onto the couch. She turned on the TV and looked at the DVDs that Dad had got from the rental place. She smiled and realized that he got her favorites from when she was younger: Corpse Bride, Swan Princess, Twilight and the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy. She picked Swan Princess, thinking they could end the night with marathoning Pirates.

It was weirdly therapeutic using the old TV and DVD player. Her dad had refused to get Netflix, claiming that it would run the Rental store out of business.

“Swan Princess? A classic,” Bill said as he walked into the living room with two pizza boxes, with bowls balanced on top of them.

“Thought we could start nicer and end with some action.” Alice smiled, helping her Dad with the food. They set it down on the coffee table, then situated themselves on the couch and got comfortable.

As they watched the movie, even though her dad and her had seen it millions of times, they still laughed at the jokes, and sang along, and gasped at the action. Slowly but surely, they ate all the pizza, and moved through Corpse Bride, Twilight and then they were finally at the Pirates movies. Alice found herself not enjoying Twilight as much, the biting sending her into thought spirals about the previous night.

“Are you going to Church on Sunday, Dad?” Alice asked as they watched Elizabeth Swan on screen.

“Of course, I go every Sunday. Why?” Bill asked, looking sideways at his daughter.

“Can I come?”

Bill’s eyebrows raised, “Sure. You sure you want to?”

Alice nodded, not elaborating. She hadn’t been to church since she came out, mostly out of fear of the stares and looks from the older members of the church. Hatchetfield was still a small town, and in small towns rumors spread fast and bigotry was always under the surface. Alice didn’t know if she believed in God, but she did know that Grace Chasity and her Family were very active in Church, and most likely would be there.

Her Dad didn’t pry further, which she appreciated. “Oh, Alice, I forgot to mention. I ran into Tom Houston at the Rental place, and he asked whether or not you were willing to babysit Tim for the day next week? On Tuesday? Tom and Becky are going on a day trip to Clivesdale, and the regular babysitter pulled out. He would pay you, and you can drive his second car for the day.”

“Yeah, that sounds fine, Dad. Tim’s a nice kid.” Alice agreed, “Just let me know the details.”

He nodded, and they went back to watching the movie.

They wrapped up their movie night at about 10 P.M., with Bill heading to bed. They had to get up early for Church tomorrow. Alice retreated to her own room, having a look for something church-ish that she could wear tomorrow. Her notebook still sat in the corner of her bedroom.

She stared at the leather-bound book, terrified of what she might find in there. But. Something is going on in this town. Alice is not crazy. She saw a cheerleader morph into a fucking monster and kill someone. Something in her wanted to just burn her notebook, delete the picture and try to enjoy the rest of the summer in peace. But that wasn’t an option, that was a cop out.

Alice had a feeling she was connected in all of this. The dreams of the rabbit and the drawings of the teeth. Something inside of her was apart of this, she just knew it.

Alice crawled over to the corner of her room and grabbed the notebook and put it on her bed. She took off the corkboard from her old desk. She grabbed post it notes and some yarn. That’s what they always did in the movies, right?

Going through her notebook, she looked at the dates that she started to draw the teeth. It began around February. She wrote that down and pinned it to the board. She also wrote down what she remembered from last night at the party. Alice remembers them mentioning a cave.

Alice wrote down Ziggy’s name, Grace’s name. Looking through the other cheerleaders’ Instagrams, she noted down the names of the new members since February. There were at least eight new members, which seemed like a lot to Alice. The members seemed to have nothing much in common, only that after they joined the squad, they looked better, were stronger.

Alice’s mind drifted to vampires. Maybe it was because she just watched Twilight. But it seemed to fit, right? Jenny Lee, who joined the squad in March had bad asthma, that seemed to have completely healed. Haley Rodriguez had cystic acne that seemed to have disappeared. What also fit was that Ziggy was bit and died. Alice is almost 100% sure that Ziggy was dead after being bitten, or at least after being thrown off a second story balcony.

Did what happen to Ziggy happen to the others as well? Or maybe a better question was:

Was it still Ziggy, or something inside of Ziggy’s body?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a bit of a filler chapter- it'll be getting more spicy as we go

**Author's Note:**

> instead of doing Uni study I decided to write this in two hours of intense focus lol. I'm notorious for not continuing things, but maybe I'll keep going with this one because honestly Nick Lang lives in my head rent free and so do all these characters.


End file.
